Monday, May 11, 2009

Mother's Day and crazy bloomin' stuff

I had the nicest Mother's Day on Sunday. This was partly because I had such low expectations, I think. I've never been a big fan of these types of holidays, the ones that seem like they were made up by marketing departments to sell us more stuff. But that doesn't stop me from drinking in a little appreciation for all I do as a mother, if anyone is willing to give it.

So my husband stayed with our little girl while I took the boys to the Star Trek movie. I really enjoyed the movie, and my lunch of popcorn, candy and soda. Yum! The movie was good enough that I'm going to take my husband later in the week. He shouldn't miss out just because he sacrificed on Mother's Day!

I also got a little reading time in over the weekend. I started reading Loving Frank, by Nancy Horan, which my book group is reading this month. So far, I am enjoying the story, which, I was surprised to find, includes a lot about the role of women in society at the time. It is making me want to do a little research on Frank Lloyd Wright, however--I know his work, but don't know the first thing about him, other than that his personal life was "colorful". And of course, Loving Frank is a novel, so I'll probably look around for some non-fiction on the subject.

The photo above is from my front garden. Last fall I got a bee in my bonnet, so to speak, about gardening with native plants. I did a little research, joined my local native plant and wildflower foundation, and planted the front garden with natives. This spring it has paid off, as I've got loads of beautiful purple blossoms, and I don't have to water nearly as much as I used to.

The photo below is what my husband calls our "hundred-dollar blackberry". That's because he thinks that's probably how much it costs in labor and water to produce the few fruits and vegetables we grow in our back yard. But isn't it crazy that fruit is already ripening here in Southern California?

That blackberry looks delicious. Way to go on planting the natives. I took a water wise class with our local water agency and learned all sorts of things like raising worms, composting, etc. I utilized what I learned for a couple of years and then my attention waned.

So glad you had a nice Mother's Day. It's a commercial holiday for sure but it's nice to have a little "me" time.

Florinda--Happy Mother's Day! Sounds like you had a nice day--getting the alone time is a good deal! Hope you enjoy Trek, let me know what you think :)

Ti--I'm trying to compost, and be somewhat water-wise, but only getting there one step at a time! I hope you had a great Mother's Day--and a little "me" time, too :)

Jeane--To learn about the native plants, I took a couple of books out of the library about native gardening, and then when I joined the local foundation I mentioned in the post, they had lots of advice for me, too. It was definitely a little daunting at first, and the biggest challenge was finding plants that would stay small enough--many natives are very sprawling. But it's all just a big experiment, and so far so good. Good luck if you try it, and let me know what you plant!

So glad you had a wonderful mothers' day - you deserve all the spoiling and treats you can get! And I am really looking forward to reading Loving Frank. Oh and the garden looks completely gorgeous. I love profusions of flowers in natural looking arrangements.

The stuff about woman's role in society at that time period is what kept me really interested in Loving Frank. I think Horan does an excellent job of getting to the root of the early feminist debate - it was really interesting.

litlove--thank you for your kind Mother's Day wishes--I really did have a nice day! And if you like your gardens a little wild, you'd definitely like mine! Loving Frank should make for a good book group discussion. I'd love to hear what you think!

verbivore--I feel the same way about Loving Frank--the historical stuff, the stuff about the "woman movement", and about Ellen Key and her philosphy, is what's keeping me interested at the moment. Makes me want to read more about early feminist debate :)

On a rare night out, we also saw Star Trek and I loved it! And how awesome about your garden! I also plant with just low water usage plants. We use way less water than all of our neighbors and not to sound prideful but I think we have some of the nicest looking flowerbeds on our street.

Natasha--I'll bet you do have nice-looking flowerbeds! I like the look of a wilder garden, anyway, so the low-water-usage, native plants really work for my aesthetic. Glad you liked Star Trek, too--I can see how it would make for a nice date night :)